Great drive today into Northern California! We took the coastal road 101 from Oregon to our first stop in Orick, CA. There we traveled out onto Gold Bluffs Beach in the Prairie Creek State Park. It's a beautiful sandy beach that goes on for miles, with dunes and a big surf. Where we stopped we had the place to ourselves. The girls eventually dared the cold pacific, and we had a great time walking, looking for shells and watching the birds.

We continued our drive 100 miles south on 101 to Route 254, The Avenue of the Giants. Wow! This is a great 30 mile drive through redwood forests. Being amongst these enormous old trees really makes you feel connected to the environment and the natural history of our country. Photos are great, but it's hard to get a real sense of their size until you stand next to one. We stopped and walked through Founders Grove. There one tree had a sign detailing it's measurements - 346 feet tall and 40 feet in circumference!

We'll continue south towards San Francisco and then east towards the desert as we make our way to Arizona.